1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a vacuum cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaning device, in particular, for cleaning floors. The vacuum cleaning tool comprises a housing having a vacuum connector for the vacuum cleaning device and an elongate intake opening provided at the underside of the housing wherein a brush roll is provided which extends parallel to the intake opening and is coupled with a drive.
2. Description of the Related Art
Vacuum cleaning tools are used primarily for cleaning floors. They are provided with rotating brush rolls for removing dirt from the floor. The brush rolls are arranged in the area of the intake opening. The bristle arrangement of such brush rolls is employed, depending on the type of floor, i.e., smooth floors or carpeting, with an action of different strength, wherein the bristles for a soft floor penetrate deeper than for a hard, smooth floor. As a function of the number of bristles as well as their elasticity as well as the rotational speed of the corresponding roll, a polishing effect can also be achieved which, however, is very limited as a result of the minimum weight of such universal vacuum cleaning tools. For this reason, special polishing devices have been proposed which are required in addition to a vacuum cleaning tool and have an electrical drive with considerable weight acting on a disc with a polishing bristle arrangement rotating about a vertical axis.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum cleaning tool of the aforementioned kind which can be universally used for different types of flooring and which can be manipulated easily.
In accordance with the present invention, this is achieved in that a vacuum shoe is exchangeably connected to the housing and comprises at least two wall portions extending substantially parallel to the brush roll between which the brush roll is received.
By providing a vacuum shoe that is exchangeable, the operator can adapt in a simple way the vacuum cleaning tool to the respective requirements of the floor to be treated so that the respective type of flooring can be cleaned and cared for in the proper way. Accordingly, for the different types of requirements only a single device is needed which can be easily manipulated.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the vacuum shoe is provided at the ends of the wall portions with sidewalls which provide the spacing of the wall portions relative to one another. The vacuum shoe forms thus a frame which is exchangeable in its entirety. Preferably, the sidewalls and wall portions of the vacuum shoe form a monolithic body and are comprised, in particular, of a plastic material. In order to facilitate the exchange of the vacuum shoe, a clamping connection, clip connection or snap connection is provided for attachment of the vacuum shoe to the housing. In this context, it is expedient for the vacuum shoe to have openings to be engaged by projections on the housing. These openings are expediently arranged in the sidewalls of the vacuum shoe, and the projections are in the form of pins projecting laterally from the housing. In order for the pins to be able to provide a double function, i.e., on the one hand, attachment of the vacuum shoe, and, on the other hand, providing a bearing action for the brush roll, the pins are arranged coaxially to the rotational axis of the brush roll. It may be expedient to provide the openings in the form of bores in elastically deformable sidewalls of the vacuum shoe so that the introduction of the pins in the bores as well as the detachment therefrom can be realized by temporary deformation of the sidewalls. As an alternative, the openings for receiving the pins can be of a substantially circular shape and can have connected thereto a radial slot extending away from the opening wherein the end of the slot adjacent or connected to the opening has a width that is smaller than the diameter of the pin.
In order for the vacuum cleaning tool not to scrape on the floor to be treated and to facilitate movement of the vacuum cleaning tool across the floor, rollers are provided at the underside of the vacuum shoe with which the vacuum cleaning tool is supported on the floor. For the treatment of carpets and soft floors, the vacuum shoe is expediently of a flat configuration so that the bristles of the brush roll project through the air intake opening.
For treating hard floors, a polishing roll is provided in a vacuum shoe of a different design. It extends parallel to the intake opening and substantially fills out the intake opening. The polishing roll with its mantle surface projects past the plane of the underside of the vacuum shoe. The drive of the polishing roll is realized preferably such that the bristles of the rotating brush roll of the vacuum cleaning tool engage the surface of the polishing roll and thus cause rotation of the polishing roll. As an alternative to this, the polishing roll can have an intermediate gear for driving the polishing roll which preferably cooperates with a gear wheel provided at an end face of the polishing roll. For enabling a simple removal of the polishing roll, for example, for the purpose of cleaning the polishing roll, the polishing roll is received in bearings that can be locked or secured within the sidewalls of the vacuum shoe.
As a drive for the brush roll and the polishing roll an air turbine is preferably provided which is arranged in a turbine chamber. It is also possible to provide an electric motor as a drive for the rolls instead of the air turbine. The shaft of the air turbine, or of the electric motor, is expediently provided with a toothed disc, and the shaft is coupled by means of a toothed belt with the brush roll.
The polishing roll is comprised preferably of a core with axle pins at the end faces and with a cover arranged on the core and formed preferably of a textile material. In this connection, it is possible to design the cover such that it forms a uniform covering over the entire axial length and is connected to the core only in the vicinity of the axial ends of the core. The textile cover is loose (unattached) relative to the roll-shaped core across the axial length of the core between the connecting locations of the cover and the core so that as a result of the circumferential speed and the resulting centrifugal forces the cover is forced into the uneven portions and cracks of the hard flooring.
The cover can also be comprised of several portions sequentially arranged in the axial direction wherein the textile covering in the respective portions has different heights and/or different degrees of hardness. For example, the portions with a higher (taller), soft covering can have a length of approximately 3 mm and the portions with a lower (shorter), hard covering can have a length of approximately 10 mm. Since the polishing roll as a result of its weight or the weight of the vacuum cleaning tool rests with the portions of the harder textile covering on the hard flooring, the fluffy textile covering of the soft portions is forced outwardly upon rotation of the polishing roll by the resulting centrifugal forces so that this covering reaches the uneven portions of the hard floor and thus produces a cleaning effect thereat. The cover of the polishing roll can be attached on the core by adhesives or by welding.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the polishing roll is supported in a floating fashion in the sidewalls of the vacuum shoe by means of elastic components. This provides an automatic adaptation of the drive of the polishing roll.